COMMUNICATIONS
Exciting and Daunting: COVID-19 Brings APHL and Members
Into New Territory
by Michelle Forman, manager, Media
As COVID-19 entered mainstream
consciousness in the US, journalists from
around the world began turning to APHL
for information and insights like never
before. Late February brought a flood of
media inquiries that was as exciting as it
was overwhelming.
APHL’s objective has always been to bring
public health laboratory work out from
the shadows and into the spotlight in
an effort to boost appreciation for these
critical institutions. But when there is
an outbreak or health threat, consumers
want to know how to avoid getting
sick and what to do if they get sick—
information about detection or testing is
seldom of interest. With COVID-19, this is
the first time where testing has been and
remains central to the global news story.
Each year, depending on whether there
is a major public health emergency,
APHL would receive approximately
50 inquiries from journalists. In 2019,
news articles mentioning APHL reached
approximately 834 million people. That
included close work with high-profile
Washington Post journalists reporting on
the EVALI response. With every mention
of APHL and its members, more and more
people were learning about public health
laboratory work.
But when a novel coronavirus began to
spread in January and February, the media
interest in APHL and its members grew
at an unprecedented rate. By the end of
February 2020, APHL could barely keep
up with the barrage of reporter inquiries
coming in from around the world. The
annual average of 50 inquiries was quickly
shattered. From January 1 to July 1, 2020,
news articles mentioning APHL reached
about 25 billion people. This kind of
visibility was literally unfathomable seven
months prior.
From January 1 to July 1, 2020, news articles mentioning
APHL reached about 25 billion people. This kind of visibility
was literally unfathomable seven months prior.
During the pandemic, APHL has worked
with reporters at local newspapers,
podcasts, scientific trade publications,
major national news outlets and massive
global news sources. Reporters continue
to not only inquire about the public health
laboratory role in the COVID-19 response,
but also to ask general laboratory
operations and testing questions. APHL
staff and members are providing testing
updates and serving as industry thought
leaders. Many reporters have noted
that they continue to reach out because
they know APHL will provide answers
and information, respond to every
reporter, speak clearly on highly complex
topics, answer candidly and honestly
and, perhaps most notably, facilitate
connections with members.
Public health laboratories are now part
of the American lexicon because of this
media coverage. People who had never
previously heard of or even considered
the existence of public health laboratories
now know that they exist and are vital
players in this response. Laboratory
scientists are being celebrated as heroes
much like their healthcare counterparts.
APHL now has new relationships with
hundreds of reporters who had never
otherwise considered the importance of
public health laboratory testing to protect
the public’s health during or outside of a
pandemic. And these relationships will
continue to be fostered as APHL continues
to support their reporting, strongly
championing the role of the public health
laboratory. •
PublicHealthLabs
@APHL
APHL.org
Summer 2020 LAB MATTERS 31